Liu Qiangdong secures a major order from Changan Automobile.
After JD's Success in Car Manufacturing, It Secures a Comprehensive Cooperation with Changan Automobile
Since the official announcement of the new car, Liu Qiangdong has been on the go non - stop.
Recently, China Changan Automobile Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "China Changan Automobile") and JD Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement to establish a comprehensive strategic partnership. In the future, the two parties will jointly carry out the design and development of new energy unmanned intelligent vehicles and jointly explore the construction of urban intelligent logistics vehicles and operation systems.
Image source: JD
In addition, the five major brands under China Changan Automobile, namely Avatr, Deepal, Changan Qiyuan, Changan Automobile, and Changan Kaicheng have all signed cooperation agreements with JD Retail, JD Logistics and other sectors under JD Group.
At present, it seems that the cooperation between JD and Changan Automobile is not as simple as imagined.
Actually, the cooperation between JD and Changan Automobile can be traced back to 2021.
Since 2021, JD has been providing support to Changan Automobile, covering scenarios such as administrative office, employee benefits, and marketing. For example, in office procurement, JD provides a centralized procurement plan from office supplies to IT equipment; in terms of employee benefits, it provides all - around services from procurement and distribution to digital and intelligent management.
During the "Double 11" period in 2024, JD and Changan Automobile also cooperated on a new car, providing car owners with a unique car - buying experience.
Recently, Liu Qiangdong has been associated with the term "car manufacturing". The last person who made a big splash by entering the car - manufacturing industry across sectors was Lei Jun of Xiaomi.
JD Group first announced that during JD 11.11, JD, in cooperation with GAC and CATL, will officially launch a new car. According to the JD APP, the car is a 5 - seat compact sedan with a cruising range of 401 - 600KM.
Image source: JD
Then, informed sources revealed that the car is expected to be priced between 100,000 and 120,000 yuan and may adopt CATL's chocolate battery - swapping model.
If this price is true, it can be said to be very competitive in the current new energy vehicle market.
In addition, the JD APP also launched an activity called "Interact to Get JD Coins and Win a Car for Free" to promote the new car. When you click into the activity page, you'll find it's a "customization service". Users can create a car that meets their personal needs by choosing car configurations such as price, appearance, performance, and battery.
Image source: JD
In other words, JD's intention this time is not just to sell cars but to sell an experience package.
In addition to the whole vehicle, JD also includes car cover customization, maintenance packages, and car accessory installation in the optional purchase plans. When users buy a car on JD, they not only get the product but also the service.
Of course, this also conforms to JD's own positioning.
While announcing the new car's development, Liu Qiangdong also started to recruit talent.
On October 16, the recruitment platform Maimai showed that JD Auto has released multiple recruitment positions, including procurement and sales, algorithm engineers, investment promotion, back - end engineers, marketing managers, etc. Many positions offer an annual salary of up to one million yuan.
Image source: Jiemian News
Among them, the annual salary for the algorithm position in the retail division can reach up to 1.23 million yuan (35k - 65k * 19 salaries), requiring mature experience in technologies such as algorithms, deep learning, and large models.
The annual salary for the person in charge of procurement and sales in the automotive industry exceeds 1.1 million yuan (45k - 70k * 16 salaries), and candidates need to have 5 - 10 years of relevant experience and be familiar with the procurement process of auto parts and supply chain management.
Image source: Weibo
In addition to a large - scale recruitment, JD has also registered multiple trademarks related to cars. According to Tianyancha, Beijing Jingdong Sanbai Liushidu E - commerce Co., Ltd. has applied to register multiple trademarks such as "JD Auto", "JD Auto JD AUTO", "JD Auto CAR.JD.COM", with international classifications including transportation tools, scientific instruments, advertising and sales, etc. Currently, some of the trademarks have been successfully registered.
Image source: Tianyancha
After such a series of smooth moves, one can't help but wonder if Liu Qiangdong is serious this time?
However, based on the current disclosed information, JD has not yet "dived into" car manufacturing from scratch.
JD also "half - clarified and half - introduced" externally that for the upcoming new car, JD is mainly responsible for providing user consumption insights, exclusive sales, and after - sales services and does not directly participate in the vehicle manufacturing process.
GAC Aion also responded that GAC Aion is responsible for the R & D and manufacturing of the new car, and JD only provides sales support.
However, with so many actions, it is possible that JD may enter the new energy vehicle - manufacturing industry in the future to grab a share of the market. People are looking forward to Liu Qiangdong's next move.
Does Liu Qiangdong Have a Car Dream?
As early as 2018, Liu Qiangdong once declared: "The automotive industry will definitely be an important development direction for JD in the future."
Over the years, Liu Qiangdong has been involved in the automotive industry, from investment to cooperation and infrastructure layout.
In 2015, Liu Qiangdong personally invested in NIO. According to the revelation by his wife Zhang Zetian at that time, Li Bin, the founder of NIO, went to Liu Qiangdong's home and explained the car - manufacturing concept in 15 minutes, and Liu Qiangdong only took 10 seconds to say "yes".
With the rapid development of the Chinese automotive market, especially the new energy vehicle sector, JD began to incorporate the automotive business into the group's strategic layout.
In 2018, JD launched a whole - vehicle trading platform and entered the car sales sector for the first time;
In 2021, it established the automotive division to integrate resources in the automotive aftermarket;
In 2022, it upgraded the offline automotive service brand "Jingchehui" to "JD Auto Service" to build a national service network;
In 2023, JD's automotive division officially started independent operation.
In 2025, JD has significantly accelerated its pace. First, it opened multiple JD new energy experience centers across the country to further improve its offline service network; then, JD submitted multiple trademark registration applications for "Joyrobotaxi", fully revealing its ambition in the field of autonomous shared mobility.
Recently, JD Logistics also launched its self - developed JD Logistics VAN unmanned light truck. This product has L4 - level autonomous driving capabilities, a large cargo space of 24 cubic meters, and a full - load cruising range of 400 kilometers, which can save about 60% of transportation costs.
Currently, the "JD Logistics VAN" has been in trial operation in 30 cities such as Beijing and Guangzhou, effectively reducing logistics costs and improving delivery efficiency.
Image source: Weibo
In addition, JD has reached strategic cooperation agreements with multiple car companies to jointly build an all - online automotive trading platform.
For example, JD Auto signed a strategic cooperation agreement with BYD, and JD Auto officially became BYD's e - commerce cooperation platform in the after - sales field.
Image source: JD
Overall, currently, JD's model is different from the asset - heavy models of Internet companies like Xiaomi and Baidu that directly enter the manufacturing industry. JD has chosen a light - asset, platform - based path.
Furthermore, relying on its powerful e - commerce and supply chain systems, JD deeply participates in and reshapes the sales and service ecosystem of the automotive industry. On the one hand, it gives full play to its own advantages; on the other hand, it reduces the risk of excessive investment in the car - manufacturing field.
Image source: JD Auto
The latest data shows that from January to September this year, the sales volume of new energy vehicles has reached about 11.4 million, and it is predicted that the annual sales volume can reach about 16 million. In September this year, the penetration rate of new energy vehicles has exceeded 53%.
As the new energy vehicle industry has developed to the present, the market competition has become extremely fierce.
Whether Liu Qiangdong's alternative model can stand out in the market competition not only concerns JD's second growth curve but also will have a profound impact on the evolution of the pattern of the Chinese automotive industry.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Internet Headlines", author: Song Hui, published by 36Kr with authorization.